Eat The World Tree

“What are you going to do?”

“…I’ll stay up all night.”

I sat in the library talking with Maronnie.

There were things I couldn’t figure out just from the classes I had all day, and with so much material, pulling an all-nighter was inevitable.

Thanks to Sansuyu dropping by and cutting some fruit for me, I had enough sugar to keep going.

Sansuyu therapy was the best.

“…You should sleep a little. What will you do tomorrow?”

1 AM.

Maronnie, having finished her portion of the work, stood up.

Watching her from the side, I could understand why people called her a genius.

Even though we were working on the same section, she solved it 4–5 minutes faster than I did.

One or two questions weren’t an issue to catch up with, but over hours, the gap grew to dozens or even hundreds of problems.

The difference in our study pace was devastating.

“…You’re still there.”

“……”

Maronnie glanced at my papers, surprised at how far behind I was.

Sorry for not being smart enough.

But it was not like I got called stupid often.

I may slack off a bit or have a rough personality, but I still got things done.

It was just that Maronnie was ridiculously smart.

“You should go ahead and sleep; I’ll understand everything here by the time you wake up.”

“…You really should sleep, though.”

As I spoke, Maronnie hesitated before sitting back down, gathering her skirt and pulling her chair next to mine.

Now we were less than a hand’s breadth apart.

“…Do you want me to teach you?”

Maronnie blushed slightly, tilting her head down to look up at me like a curious kitten.

“I’m really good at teaching.”

That was a blow to my pride.

Was this what it felt like to be overwhelmed by a genius appointed by the nation?

The gap in our intellect was undeniable.

“…I’ll do it on my own. It’s more fun that way.”

“I kind of get it. You get stuck on one problem for like five hours.”

I said it offhandedly, but she agreed wholeheartedly.

Had she really spent five hours on a problem before?

“But if you don’t sleep like this, it’ll affect your health.”

“It won’t affect me.”

“……”

Maronnie gave me a disapproving look.

What did she expect me to do?

She folded her arms on the desk, rested her chin on them, and just stared at me as if silently protesting.

-Gulp.

I heard the sound of someone swallowing.

“Then I’ll wait until you’re finished.”

“…You should get some sleep.”

“We’re in the same class. Back in my day, I did this often with my lab friends.”

Did she think I’d stop?

Her words made me even more determined to keep studying.

Maronnie laid down and dozed off, waking up occasionally to glance at me before drifting off again.

“Nngh,”

She squirmed uncomfortably.

I kept moving my pen, but her fidgeting was too distracting, and I had no choice but to stop studying.

“Sigh.”

This was why I didn’t get along well with those who had white magic.

Both of us were so stubborn that we never backed down.

In the end, I was always the one to give up first, just like when I was with Baekdo.

“Maronnie.”

“…Yes.”

“Let’s wash up and get some sleep.”

Blanche rubbed her eyes, stretched her stiff body, and got up.

We stood up, organized our books, and headed to our rooms.

“Did you finish everything?”

“No. You looked too uncomfortable sleeping, so I decided to call it a night.”

“Are you worried about me?”

“Yeah, think of it that way.”

“…Sometimes, I can’t tell if you’re kind or not.”

Still, seeing her smile at me meant she wasn’t in a bad mood.

Looking at her now, she seemed to be gradually loosening up.

Before, just touching her would make her breathe heavily as if she were about to explode, but now we could have casual conversations like this.

Compared to a few days ago, this was great progress.

Maybe now she wouldn’t flinch if I touched her with my hands.

-Swish.

With that thought in mind, I reached out and touched Maronnie’s head.

Her soft, sky-blue hair slipped through my fingers.

It felt like silk. The hair sprouted between my fingers and stood up like a cat’s ears at the sides of my hands.

The more I looked, the more fascinating it was.

It seemed to move according to her emotions.

“Wh-Why are you touching me again?!”

“Oh. I was just checking if my ability was still affecting you.”

“…I take it back! I take back calling you kind. You’re still the same….”

“Sorry.”

She hit my shoulder lightly, then grabbed my shirt.

“But you’ve improved a lot, haven’t you?”

“……That’s… not really improvement, just because I was lying on your bed….”

Maronnie mumbled in a voice so quiet I wasn’t sure it was meant for me to hear.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Her voice was too small to be intentional.

It wasn’t just magic that had improved after my trip back. My senses had sharpened as well, and I heard everything.

I didn’t know why she’d been lying on my bed, but maybe there was some weird reason behind it.

I suddenly felt like I was some kind of drug.

Even Lee Seyeong and Hwangdo would hug me at every opportunity, claiming they were absorbing my “essence.”

“What did you say?”

“…Nothing.”

When I asked again, she avoided my gaze, assuming I hadn’t heard.

‘Let’s just pretend I didn’t hear that.’

As odd as it might seem, this was one of Maronnie’s coping mechanisms to endure the bond.

There was no point in making her feel embarrassed about it.

As long as she wasn’t lying down on my bed with wet hair after a bath, I didn’t mind.

Talking like this, we crossed the hallway outside the library, carefully stepping over the pile of books Sephirot had scattered, and entered our room.

Inside, Sansuyu was lying on the bed, her eyes open.

“…Shiheon.”

“You’re not asleep?”

“Yeah. I couldn’t sleep.”

“Why can’t you sleep? Are you feeling unwell?”

“I feel a bit… sick.”

Oh no.

Had it finally started?

“Are you sick, Sansuyu?”

Blanche stepped closer, worried, and checked Sansuyu’s condition.

I couldn’t figure out the cause, and neither could Maronnie.

Sansuyu placed her hand on her chest, looking at me with a glance.

“Shiheon, I….”

“Ahem.”

She was about to say “touch my chest,” but I cleared my throat.

It was a signal for her to stop, and she understood, closing her mouth tightly.

She was holding back, clenching her eyes shut.

It was because I hadn’t been paying attention to her condition for a while.

“What should we do? Should I call the Sage?”

I stopped Maronnie, who was starting to panic, and sighed.

There was no avoiding it this time.

“You go ahead and sleep.”

“…What are you going to do?”

“This happens often. I’ll give her a massage. We’ll be in the changing room, so you can wash up and sleep first.”

“The changing room?”

“It’s a bit embarrassing to do it out in the open.”

“…Embarrassing?”

Maronnie was kind, so even if she were to find out, I doubt she’d spread it around.

But there was no need for her to know anyway.

If I lied and she caught me, it’d just make things more complicated, so I tried to brush it off casually.

Sansuyu had already gotten up and was walking toward me with heavy steps.

“…Quickly.”

Sansuyu groaned.

At that moment, Maronnie realized the situation and nodded.

“H-Hurry. She looks like she’s in a lot of pain. Are you sure you can fix it? Shouldn’t the Sage know about this?”

“It’s nothing serious. Oh, but if you want to shower, the shower room is over there….”

“I-I’ll go to the shower room. You can do it here, right?”

I sent Maronnie off to the shower room with some coaxing.

“Shiheon.”

As soon as Maronnie had hurried off with her clothes, Sansuyu quickly took off her t-shirt.

Her breasts, filled with milk, began to leak.

I immediately reached out and evaporated the milk.

There was no avoiding the scent.

-Drip, drip.

When I pulled down the bra’s cup, her breasts, which had been hidden, bounced into view.

The sight had an addictive effect, much like a cigarette, and my whole body reacted.

“…I’ll show you how to use the breast pump.”

It was hard for me to do it directly anymore.

I took out the breast pump from the luggage Sansuyu had brought.

---

She went to shower, but didn’t say how long it would take.

-Whoosh.

Bubbles ran down her pale skin.

-Squeeze.

Even after washing her hair, body, and applying treatment, it only took 15 minutes.

After drying her hair and putting on a towel in the changing room, 30 minutes passed at most.

‘Should they be done by now?’

He mentioned it would be something embarrassing.

Maronnie knew there must have been a reason for wanting to keep it hidden.

She was the type to always keep her promises—her personality prioritized promises over most things.

But since he hadn’t given a time limit…

She couldn’t sit around in the changing room forever.

Maronnie glanced at the firmly closed door.

“Shiheon, Sansuyu, are you done?”

There was no response.

Of course, there wouldn’t be. The room was soundproof.

Even after changing into fresh clothes and watching droplets roll down the walls, Shiheon didn’t open the door.

She couldn’t stay up all night waiting.

Reluctantly, Maronnie gently opened the door to speak to him.

-Creak.

She carefully opened the door.

-…Ahhhng!

“?”

Sansuyu’s moan echoed.

Maronnie froze.

That soft, sultry voice… she recognized it.

It wasn’t the sound of pain, but rather a sound of pleasure, the kind one made during intimate moments.

Unable to control herself, Maronnie immediately turned her head to see the scene.

“…!?!?”

It was supposed to be a medical act.

But… no.

Shiheon was holding a silicone dome-shaped object in his hands, moving it in a way that was anything but medical.

Maronnie gasped, covering her mouth and quickly shutting the door.

-Thump, thump, thump.

‘What, what, what… what is this?’

Her mind was spinning, shattered by the shock.

But amid her shock, Maronnie felt a dirty feeling deep inside her chest.

‘So this was the “embarrassing” thing…’

Was it for something so indecent?

Her heart ached as if it were being squeezed.

Had Shiheon’s ability included feelings like this as well? The impact felt like a hammer to her head, leaving her dazed.

-‘I’ve never done anything like this with anyone but you.’

Why did Shiheon’s words suddenly come to mind?

I knew it was a lie, but it felt like my heart was breaking.

“…Ahh! Ahhhh! Why did I look?! Blanche, you idiot, ahhh!”

Maronnie banged her fists against the floor in regret.

Yet, amidst her shame, there was still a lingering excitement and curiosity. Maronnie wiped the sweat from her chin and waved her hands in frustration. ℟аΝỘ𝖇Ęŝ

‘So they were… that kind of couple.’

Whether it was a medical procedure or not, touching someone’s chest with a device wasn’t exactly normal.

Maronnie, holding her breath, opened the door again.

What she saw through the crack in the door…

Shiheon was right in front of her.

“All done.”

“Eek!”

Thud!

She fell to the floor.

“What’s wrong?”

She glanced quickly into the room.

The scent of milk. It was the same smell that sometimes came from Sansuyu’s body.

Sansuyu was wearing a white t-shirt now, and as Maronnie looked, she replayed the scene from earlier in her mind.

-Thump, thump.

For some reason, she felt a little angry.

“…Is Sansuyu okay now?”

“Yeah.”

He answered shamelessly.

Maronnie clenched her teeth, frustrated.

It was hard to even put into words.

If they were consenting adults, she had no right to interfere.

…She figured her own feelings were just a mistake, manipulated by circumstance.

But maybe those two were truly lovers.

Maronnie never imagined Shiheon would use his ability on Sansuyu as well.

“Get up.”

She took Shiheon’s hand and stood up.

At that moment, the strong scent of sweat wafted from his body.

The scene flashed through her mind again.

The image of Shiheon, drenched in sweat, touching Sansuyu’s chest replayed in her head, and Maronnie felt like she was losing control.

…Again.

That feeling was coming back again.

“…I need to go to the bathroom.”

“Huh? Oh. Go ahead.”

-Creak!

Bang!

The door slammed loudly.

Maronnie pushed Shiheon slightly and rushed into the bathroom, immediately sitting down on the toilet and pulling down her stockings.

Despite having just showered, her lower body was already soaked. Just the slightest touch made her tremble uncontrollably.

“…He said he only did it with me. What kind of medical procedure is this?”

Sansuyu’s pained face had long disappeared from her mind.

Even if it were a medical procedure, even if Shiheon had called it “embarrassing,” Sansuyu had been enjoying it.

And the sight of Shiheon, touching her large breasts…

That excited look on his face… It was driving her crazy.

It seemed like she wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight.

---

After finishing my shower, I took a quick nap.

For some reason, Maronnie had been in the bathroom for a long time. I thought I might strike up a conversation, but I ended up falling asleep first.

It often happened when I had a lot of contact with Sansuyu.

“…You’re not asleep?”

When I sat up from the bed, Maronnie was sitting on the edge of the bed.

She seemed to be getting ready to go out.

But her outfit was a little revealing.

She wore white stockings that showed her underwear, and she had on just a short-sleeved shirt and stockings.

It almost seemed like she was glaring at me.

“…I couldn’t sleep.”

So, the same person who yelled at me to sleep, couldn’t sleep herself.

“Why?”

I asked, confused, and Maronnie stuck out her tongue while braiding one side of her hair.

“…It’s none of your business.”

Her expression was subtly reproachful.

At that moment, Sansuyu shifted in her sleep.

Seeing Sansuyu’s soft, glistening face, Maronnie glared at me even more intensely than before, her expression turning sour.

“I don’t know.”

She looked like she was about to cry.